


Negotiation

by AchillesMonkey



Series: It's Classified - a Non-Sexual Age Play series [3]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Age Play, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - BDSM, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Bathing/Washing, Caretaking, Cuddling & Snuggling, Daddy Kink, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Kink Negotiation, Littles Are Known, M/M, Non-Sexual Age Play, Pet Play, Platonic Bed-sharing, Relationship Negotiation, Safewords
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-07
Updated: 2018-05-11
Packaged: 2019-05-03 12:16:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14568834
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AchillesMonkey/pseuds/AchillesMonkey
Summary: In a universe where people are given a specific classification (Dominant, Submissive, Caregiver, Little, Owner, Pet, or Neutral) after their 25th birthday, Leo Fitz, a registered Little, decides it's time to take the next step in his relationship with Mack, a registered Caregiver, and do some Negotiating.This fic contains non-sexual age play.





	1. Daddy

**Saturday, July 6** **th** **, 2013**

**The Park**

 

Mack looked at his phone to check the time before his eyes sought out the Little Boy hanging upside down on the monkey bars. “Leo!” he called out, “five more minutes!”

“Okay, Daddy!” the Little Boy answered.

Mack took a quick breath. Had he heard that right? Had Leo really called him Daddy? He’d thought about taking the next step in his relationship with Leo, doing some Negotiating, coming up with a basic Contract. Nothing formal, of course. Neither of them were ready for that. Just something to make their relationship a bit more official.

He hadn’t brought up the idea to Leo yet though. If he was honest with himself, it was because he was afraid Leo wouldn’t be ready to take that step. Mack knew he was Leo’s first serious relationship, and he really hoped he’d be Leo’s only serious relationship, but even if he wasn’t, he wanted to make it a good first experience for the Boy.

Mack checked the time on his phone again and saw that the five minutes had passed. He waved at Leo and the Little Boy unhooked himself from the monkey bars and made his way over. He didn’t look at Mack as he reached him; his eyes were fixed firmly on the ground. Mack wondered if he hadn’t meant to let ‘Daddy’ slip out. Leo was probably just as nervous about this relationship as he was.

Mack’s motorcycle made any conversation between the two difficult; not that Mack wanted to have that conversation while driving anyway. He pulled into a space in front of Leo’s apartment and put his feet on the ground. Leo climbed off and handed his helmet to Mack, still not meeting his eyes.

“Bye,” the Little Boy mumbled and turned to go inside.

“Fitz,” Mack called out, grabbing his hand as he tried to walk away. He purposely used the Boy’s out-of-Headspace name, though Mack wasn’t entirely sure where he currently fell Headspace-wise. “Come to my place tomorrow? Anytime after eleven.”

The Boy glanced up, briefly meeting Mack’s gaze before looking away again and nodding. “Okay.”

“Okay,” Mack echoed. “See you tomorrow.”

“Bye.”

Mack watched until the Boy was safely inside before heading to his mechanic shop. He parked his bike and entered the garage, heading straight to his office to change into his coveralls. He took a few deep breaths, trying to calm all of his anxieties about his relationship with Leo. It was time to focus on work and let his subconscious figure out his relationship for awhile.

~*~*~*~

At seven on the dot, Mack closed the garage doors and began locking everything up. “Night, Mack!” Joey, one of Mack’s employees, called out, waving as he left. Joey’s Dom, Robbie, who also worked at Mack’s shop, simply gave a short nod goodbye and followed his partner out.

“Night, guys!” Mack called after them. He headed to his office where he took off his coveralls and tossed them into a backpack to take home to wash. He opened the appointment book and reviewed their appointments for Monday before gathering his things in order to call it a night. He double-checked all the locks and then made his way to his motorcycle, checking his phone as he walked. There was a missed call and a voicemail from Fitz. He leaned against his bike as he listened.

“Hey, Mack, erm, it’s Fitz, but I guess you know that since you have me saved in your phone. Erm, listen, I’m really sorry about earlier. You know, when I—when I said—when I called you—what I called you. I didn’t mean to call you that, and I’m sorry. I think—I think I made things weird between us. I’m really good at doing that.” There was a soft, mumbled “stop babbling!” that made Mack chuckle. “Yeah, so, sorry. Don’t feel like you have to call me back, and I don’t have to come over tomorrow if you don’t want me to. Bye.”

Mack quickly pressed the ‘call back’ option and put the phone to his ear as it started ringing. “Hi,” Fitz squeaked out when he answered.

“You do not have to be sorry about what happened,” Mack told him, skipping the pleasantries and getting straight to the point. “I don’t think you made things weird at all. I’ve actually been thinking about doing some Negotiation, but I didn’t want to push you.”

“Oh,” Fitz said. There was a short pause. “So, you’re okay with me calling you—” Fitz trailed off, unable to bring himself to say the word outside of Headspace.

“When you called me Daddy today, I felt surprised,” Mack told him, “but more than that, I felt happy. It felt right. I would love it if you called me Daddy, but I don’t want to make you do anything you’re not ready for.”

“I’m ready,” Fitz said quickly. “I’m so ready.”

Mack smiled. “Good, I’m happy to hear that. Please come to my place tomorrow? We can Negotiate some more, and—” Mack paused briefly, uncertain if Fitz would agree to the next part. “You could stay the night, if you want to.”

“That sounds nice,” Fitz said after a short pause. “I’ll be there.”

“Anytime after eleven,” Mack reminded him.

“Okay.”

“Night, Fitz. See you tomorrow.”

“Night, Daddy.”

Mack hung up and pocketed his phone before putting his helmet on and driving home. Once he reached his house, he entered through the garage, dropping his backpack on top of the washing machine as he passed by. He entered the kitchen and stuck a plate a leftovers in the microwave before grabbing a beer and wandering over to the doorway of the second bedroom.

He’d bought the two bedroom house hoping that one day he’d have a Little in the second bedroom. The room was empty apart from some boxes he’d never got around to unpacking. He’d left the room untouched so he and his Little could decorate it together. He let his mind wander, picturing a jungle theme, or maybe a space theme. Leo loved monkeys, but he was also into rockets. Mack smiled and took a sip of his drink. He was really looking forward to seeing what Leo picked out.


	2. Negotiation

**Sunday, July 7th, 2013**

**Mack’s House**

 

Fitz began chewing his nails as Jemma’s car turned into Mack’s neighborhood. “Stop that,” she scolded when she noticed what he was doing. “You’re going to be fine.”

“Yeah,” Fitz agreed absentmindedly. “But what if he wants things I don’t want? Or if I want something he doesn’t?”

“Then you talk about it,” Jemma answered. “You talk about it together, and see if you can reach a compromise, or if whatever it is is a hard limit for either of you. That’s the whole point of Negotiation, Fitz.” 

She pulled into Mack’s driveway and put the car in park. “Do you want me to walk you to the door?”

Fitz didn’t answer. He continued biting his nails as he stared out the window at Mack’s front yard with the neatly cut grass and the bushes neatly planted along the front porch. He took in the blue color of the siding, and the wooden chairs that were on the porch. He’d been to Mack’s house before, of course, plenty of times, but this time felt different. This time, he was visiting Daddy’s house. This time, he was planning on spending more than a few hours here. This time, he was planning on spending the night.

Jemma grabbed his wrist and gently tugged his fingers out of his mouth. “Enough stalling, Fitz! It’s going to be fine. And if it’s not fine, all you have to do is call or text me, and I’ll come get you. Understand?”

“Yeah,” Fitz said, nodding. He unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the car door, grabbing his backpack and duffel bag from the floor as he got out. “Thanks for the ride, Jemma.”

“Of course, Fitz,” Jemma said. “Good luck, and have fun!”

Fitz made his way to the front door and knocked. He turned to wave to Jemma as she drove off and when he turned back around, the door was open and Mack was standing there, smiling at him. Fitz blushed as he smiled back. “Hi.”

“Hi,” Mack replied. “Come on in. I have lunch ready.” Fitz followed Mack inside, closing the door behind him. “You can put your bags in the hall there,” Mack said, pointing to the hallway leading to the bedrooms and bathroom. 

Fitz put his bags against the wall and followed Mack into the kitchen. His mouth dropped open in surprise as he noticed his favorite sandwich on a plate on the table.

“Jemma texted me the recipe last night,” Mack explained as he opened the fridge door. “Do you want a soda?”

“Sure,” Fitz agreed, sitting down at the table. He noticed a stack of papers off to the side with  **Guide to Caregiver & Little Negotiation** written in large letters on the top of the first page.

Mack put a glass in front of Fitz and sat down. “I did a lot of googling last night,” Mack admitted, nodding at the papers. “I found a bunch of checklists and questionnaires that I thought might help us with our Negotiation.”

“Okay,” Fitz said.

“But that can wait until after lunch,” Mack told him. He picked up the sandwich and took a bite. “Damn,” he muttered once he’d swallowed. “I now understand why that’s your favorite.”

Fitz grinned and bit into his own sandwich. Mack must have followed Jemma’s recipe exactly because it was perfect. 

They chatted about work while they ate. Mack told Fitz about a difficult customer who had pitched a fit at the very fair price they’d given him for his car repairs and how Robbie had shut him up with just a glare. Fitz told Mack about the new upgrades he was planning on including in SHIELD’s latest prosthetic. 

When they were finished with lunch, Mack put the dishes in the sink to deal with later and came back over to the table. “Do you want to do this here or in the living room?” he asked.

“Erm,” Fitz considered his options. The living room would be more comfortable, but the table would give them space to work, and probably more privacy if they sat on opposite ends. “Here,” he decided.

“Okay.” Mack sat back down in his chair and pulled the papers over to him. “I thought we could start with the checklist from official Caregiver/Little website and then move on to the more in-depth questionnaire I found online.”

“Okay,” Fitz agreed. He took the paper and pen Mack handed over and looked at the checklist. It was pretty basic and simple. There was a section for Littles and a section for Caregivers with common aspects of the Caregiver/Little relationship in each section followed by yes, no, or maybe checkboxes. 

“I think we’re supposed to fill out both sections,” Mack said after he looked it over. “So I’d fill out the Little section with what I want from you in the relationship, and the Caregiver section with what I want out of the relationship, and you’d fill it in the opposite.”

Fitz nodded and started filling in the Little section. Anything for babies, such as bottles, pacifiers, and diapers, was an automatic no. Physical discipline (e.g. spanking, washing mouth out, etc.) was also an automatic no. He said yes to willing to be in Headspace in public and private, call Caregiver a typical Caregiver name (e.g. Mommy, Daddy, Aunt, Uncle, etc.), discipline such as time-out or grounding from toys or activities, and play with Headspace-appropriate toys, books, television, movies, and games.

In the Caregiver section, he checked yes for act like a Caregiver in public and private, make decisions about meals, clothes, bedtime, etc., and maybe for help with hygiene-related tasks (e.g. toileting, brushing teeth, bathing, etc.). He checked the appropriate boxes for the rest of the questions in each section and then checked over his answers to see if he wanted to change anything.

“Do you want to go over the checklists now, or go straight to the questionnaire?” Mack asked once they were both finished.

Fitz glanced at the checklist and then at the questionnaires on the table. “Questionnaire,” he said, suddenly feeling anxious about sharing his answers with Mack. He started chewing on his thumbnail as he looked over the papers Mack handed to him.

These questions were more open. They asked him to describe what he wanted in a Caregiver/Little relationship, what his real childhood had been like, what kind of relationship did he have with his biological parents, if he could have a perfect day as a Little, what would that look like, to describe what discipline he was comfortable or not comfortable with, to describe what Caregiver/Little activities he was comfortable or not comfortable with, to share what toys, games, tv shows, and movies he enjoyed, and to describe his ideal Caregiver.

Fitz spent three-quarters of an hour answering the questions. Some were easy to answer. His relationship with his mum had been good. His relationship with his dad had been abusive. He liked Lego, Curious George, monkeys, Nerf guns, playing at the park, and Disney movies. Some, such as his perfect day as a Little, or his ideal Caregiver, took a lot of thought.

“Let’s go into the living room to talk,” Mack suggested when they were both finished. Fitz stood up and stretched, shaking his right hand, which was sore from all the writing.

Fitz chose to sit in one of the armchairs while Mack sat on the couch and stretched his long legs out. “I’ll go first?” Mack offered, and Fitz nodded. “Okay,” Mack picked up the questionnaire. “I think the questionnaire is going to help us with our Negotiation best, so I’m going to start with that.” Fitz nodded in agreement.

“What I want in a Caregiver/Little relationship, is mutual fun and respect. I want someone to take care of, and someone who will let me take care of them. I want us to have fun together, to play, to do things together like go to the park, or the movies, or to the ice cream store. I want to take care of you: cook you meals, give you a bath, read you stories, tuck you into bed, put bandaids on your scraped knees, hug you and kiss you, and love you. I want you to trust me to take care of you and that I’ll meet your needs.

“My ideal Little is simply just someone who loves me and trusts me to be their Caregiver. My ideal day with a Little would be me waking you up with a kiss, maybe cuddling in bed together while we talk about our day. I’d help you pick out your clothes and then go make breakfast while you got ready, unless you wanted my help getting dressed, then I’d help you before going to make breakfast. After breakfast, we’d go out, maybe to the park, or run some errands, or meet up with friends for a playdate. After lunch, we’d do something quiet around the house, like play a game, or build a puzzle, or you could play in your room while I did work around the house if you wanted some alone time. You could help me make dinner, and then after we ate, we could watch a movie together and eat ice cream. I’d give you a bath, and read you stories, and tuck you into bed.” Mack paused and looked at Fitz. “How is all of this sounding so far?”

“Good,” Fitz told him. “I’m good with all of it so far.”

Mack smiled, looking relieved. “I’m glad to hear that.” He looked through the questions to figure out what to say next. “I think I already covered most of the Caregiver/Little activities I enjoy. Um, discipline, well, I’d prefer to use time-out or taking away toys or privileges, but if spanking is something you want—” 

“No,” Fitz said quickly, interrupting Mack. “No. Spanking is a hard limit for me.”

“Okay,” Mack said, nodding. “That’s fine.”

“So is shouting,” Fitz offered, “and name-calling.”

“Are you okay with me calling you Turbo?” Mack asked, looking worried.

“Yeah,” Fitz said. “I just meant—well—my dad—my biological dad, he wasn’t a nice man. He called me stupid, and worthless, and a whole lot more, always in anger or annoyance. So I’m fine with nicknames, or silly name-calling, just—just don’t call me names when you’re angry.”

“No, I wouldn’t do that, Fitz,” Mack said. “And if you don’t like a nickname I give you, just tell me, and I won’t use it.”

“Thanks,” Fitz mumbled. “Erm, I’m good with time-outs and taking stuff away. I can’t promise I won’t cry or tantrum about it, but it’s not a limit for me.”

“I can handle crying and tantrums,” Mack assured him.

“Yeah, I know,” Fitz said, thinking back to the time a bit over a month ago, when he’d been playing with Lance while Mack babysat. The Boys had gotten into a fight and Mack had put both of them in time-out. Leo had cried, but Mack hugged him when it was over and dried his tears. It was around then that Leo had started mentally thinking about Mack as Daddy.

“Do you want to share more about your wants?” Mack asked.

“Okay,” Fitz said. He looked down at the paper in his hand. “Erm, well, I guess my ideal Caregiver would be someone strong, who can take care of me and read me stories, and hug me when I’m sad. Someone who will play with me, and—and praise me when I do good.” He looked up and saw that Mack was smiling at him and nodding encouragingly. “Erm, my ideal day would just be doing stuff together and having fun and being taken care of, not having to think about grown-up worries or make grown-up decisions.

“As far as activities, well, I like Lego, and Nerf guns, and playing at the park, and going to Playgroup, and playing with Lance and Pietro, and I like watching Disney movies, and I like Curious George.”

“Do you have any other limits or things you don’t like?” Mack asked when Fitz didn’t continue.

“Erm, well, I put hygiene stuff like bathing as a maybe on the checklist, but I think I’ll be okay if it’s something you want,” Fitz told him.

Mack nodded. “We should come up with safe-words,” he said. “So if anything ever happens that either of us don’t like, we can pause or stop altogether.” 

Fitz nodded in agreement. “Like what?”

“Well, they’d have to be something we wouldn’t normally say.”

They were quiet as they thought. “How about  _ ne facias _ ?” Fitz suggested. “It’s Latin. It means—well, the basic translation is ‘Don’t do that.’”

“ _ Ne facias _ ,” Mack repeated. “Yeah, that’s not something either of us would say while in Headspace.”  Mack shifted and put his papers on the coffee table. “I don’t have anything else to talk about. Do you?” Fitz shook his head. “Okay, then I thought we could spend the rest of the time in Headspace. I could call Izzy and Lance and see if they want to meet us at the park?”

Fitz grinned and nodded. “Yeah!” He put his papers on top of Mack’s. “I brought some Little clothes to wear,” he told Mack.

“Okay,” Mack said. “You remember where the bathroom is, right? Unless you want me to help you?”

“No, I can do it,” Fitz said.

“Okay. I’ll give Izzy a call while you’re changing.”

Fitz picked up his duffel bag and brought it into the bathroom. He shut the door and opened it, pulling out the black athletic shorts and the blue t-shirt with a minion on it that he’d brought with him. He changed into the outfit and smiled at himself in the mirror.  _ Everything’s good _ he texted Jemma before putting his phone into his duffel bag.


	3. Playtime

**Sunday, July 7th, 2013**

**Mack’s House**

 

Leo came out of the bathroom and dropped his duffel bag next to his backpack in the hallway. He went back to the living room where Daddy was still on the phone. He wandered over to look at the bookshelves, but there weren’t any kids books. There were a couple mechanical manuals that looked interesting for Fitz though.

“Great, we’ll see you soon, Izzy,” Daddy said. He hung up the phone and turned to Leo. “Izzy and Lance and Izzy’s friend Victoria will meet us at the park,” he said.

“Yay!” Leo cheered. “Let’s go, Daddy!”

They went to the garage and Daddy helped Leo put the helmet on, making sure it was strapped firmly under his chin. They climbed onto the motorcycle and Daddy backed out onto the road.

Leo looked around for Izzy’s car when they pulled into the park’s parking lot, but he didn’t spot it. “Where are they?” he asked once they’d parked and climbed off the bike.

“They’ll be here soon,” Daddy promised. “We just beat them here. Where do you want to play while you wait?”

“I’ll go up to the tower with the spyglass so I can see when they get here,” Leo said. 

He ran over to the play structure and climbed up until he got to the third level, which had an alcove with a spyglass and the opening to the spiral tube slide. He knelt and first found his Daddy with the spyglass before focusing it on the parking lot. After a few minutes of diligent watching, he saw Izzy’s car pull into the parking lot. He grinned and stood up, going down the slide to reach the ground quickly. 

Leo saw Lance getting out of the car, along with Izzy, and a woman he didn’t recognize. Lance ran over and grabbed Leo’s hand. “Come on,” he said, pulling Leo back up the stairs to the top of the play structure.

“Who’s that lady?” Leo asked his friend once they were sitting together in the alcove with the spyglass.

“Victoria,” Lance answered, not looking very happy. “She’s Mum’s friend from work, but she and Mum have been spending a lot of time together lately.”

“Oh,” Leo said. He focused the spyglass on the three adults talking together on the side of the playground. The woman, Victoria, was tall, taller than Izzy, but not as tall as Daddy. She had black hair with red streaks and wore black rectangular glasses. Not finding anything interesting about her, he turned back to Lance who was leaning against the bars of the play structure. “Guess what?”

“What?”

“Mack and I Negotiated. He’s my Daddy now.”

Lance sat up and grinned at him, holding out a hand for a high five. “That’s awesome! Congratulations!”

Leo slapped his hand, grinning back. “Yeah, it’s awesome!” he agreed.

“I brought my football,” Lance said suddenly. “Do you want to play?”

“Okay,” Leo agreed.

The two Boys slid down the slide and ran over to where Mack, Izzy, and Victoria were standing. “Mum, Mack is Leo’s Daddy now!” Lance announced when they reached the group.

“Yes, he was just telling us,” Izzy said. “Congratulations, Leo,” she told him.

“Thanks,” Leo said, suddenly feeling shy. He reached for Daddy’s hand and Daddy gave his a squeeze.

“Mum, can I get my football out of the car?”

“Yes, it’s unlocked.”

“Leo, this is Izzy’s friend, Victoria,” Daddy said as Lance ran off to get his football.

“Hi, Leo,” Victoria said, smiling at him.

“Hi,” Leo said, bringing his thumb up to his mouth to chew on the nail.

“How old are you, Leo?” Victoria asked.

Leo rested his head against Daddy’s arm and didn’t answer. “He’s six,” Daddy answered for him, “and shy.”

“Come on, Leo!” Lance called out as he ran back over with the football. 

Leo let go of Daddy’s hand and ran after Lance to the large grassy area next to the playground. Lance dropped the football to the ground and kicked it toward Leo. It went rolling past Leo and he turned to run after it.

Before he could get to it, however, a Pet in a brown onesie with an attached tail wearing dog ears attached to a headband ran up on all fours and headbutted the ball away. The Pet let out a bark and ran after the ball as Leo stopped and stared.

“Hey!” Lance yelled once he saw what happened. “Stop! That’s my ball! Bad dog!” He ran after the Pet and his ball. Leo watched in amazement for a few seconds before running after Lance as the Pet reached the ball and headbutted it again.

“Rusty!” a woman’s voice yelled out. Leo stopped running and turned to see a woman in a tracksuit holding a leash running toward them. “Rusty, bad dog!” She ran to the Pet and grabbed his collar, stopping him from going after the football again. 

Lance picked his ball up and held it protectively in his arms as the woman clipped the leash to the Pet’s collar. “I’m so sorry, Boys,” she told them. “Rusty just loves to play with balls, and he somehow managed to slip off his leash.” Rusty barked again, nudging at the woman’s hand. “Shush,” she told him. “I’m so sorry. He won’t bother you again. Get back to your game.” She tugged on Rusty’s leash and he reluctantly followed her, turning to look back at the Boys a few times as they walked away.

Mack, Izzy, and Victoria came up to them as they watched the woman and her Pet walk away. “What happened?” Izzy asked.

“Are you okay?” Mack asked at the same time, reaching out to take Leo’s hand.

“That Pet stole my ball,” Lance told his Mum.

“What was he doing off his leash?” Victoria wondered. “That’s not allowed. He didn’t attack you, did he?”

The Boys shook their heads. “No, just my ball,” Lance said.

“Why don’t you boys go play on the playground,” Izzy suggested, taking the ball from Lance. “You can play ball another time when there aren’t any Pets around.”

“But, Muuum,” Lance whined. Izzy frowned at him and pointed toward the playground. Lance scowled, but took Leo’s hand. “Come on, Leo. Let’s go play.”

Lance and Leo pretended they were pirates sailing the seas and looking for treasure. It was a fun game and Leo was very disappointed when Daddy said it was time to go.

“I want to keep playing,” he told Daddy.

“You can play another time,” Daddy said. “Do you want to order pizza for dinner?” Leo nodded, brightening a bit at the promise of pizza. “Okay. Say goodbye to Lance, Izzy, and Victoria.”

“Bye!” Leo called, waving to his friend.

“Bye!” Lance called back as he got into Izzy’s car.

Daddy helped Leo with the helmet and they went back to the house.

~*~*~*~

Leo searched for a movie to watch while Daddy called to order a pizza. 

“The pizza will get here in about 30 minutes,” Daddy announced as he walked into the living room. He sat down on the sofa next to Leo and put his arm on the back of the couch. “What did you choose?”

“The Pirates! Band of Misfits,” Leo said. He leaned against Daddy’s side and rested his head on Daddy’s shoulder.

“You and Lance were playing pirates weren’t you?” Daddy asked.

Leo nodded. “We had to find the buried treasure. It was fun.”

“That does sound fun,” Daddy agreed.

“Do we have to wait for the pizza to start the movie?” Leo asked.

“No, we can start it,” Daddy said. Leo pressed play and the movie began.

The pizza arrived about a third into the movie. They paused long enough to get plates and napkins and then began eating while they continued to watch. When they were done with the pizza, Daddy took the plates and the leftover pizza into the kitchen and, after a few minutes, came back with a large bowl of ice cream. He sat down next to Leo on the couch, holding the bowl in one hand.

Leo turned his attention away from the movie when he noticed the ice cream, frowning when he saw there was only one spoon. “I thought we could share,” Daddy said, noticing his frown. “Is that okay?”

Leo nodded and leaned against Daddy again, turning his attention back to the movie. Daddy held a spoonful of ice cream in front of Leo’s mouth and Leo opened, taking the bite of ice cream from the spoon. They alternated bites until the ice cream was gone and the movie was over.

“Did you like the movie?” Daddy asked.

“Yeah, it was good. I liked Mr. Bobo the best.”

Daddy chuckled. “Yeah, that makes sense.” He stood up and went into the kitchen the put the empty ice cream bowl into the sink. When he came back, he paused in front of the couch, looking at Leo a bit apprehensively. “I’d like to give you a bath,” he said. “I know you said you were only a maybe on that, so we don’t have to, but—”

“Do you have bubbles?” Leo interrupted to ask. “And bath toys?”

Daddy smiled. “Yes to the bubbles, no to the bath toys. I’ll add it to the list of things we need to buy.”

Leo nodded and followed Daddy into the bathroom. Daddy turned the water on in the tub and Leo fidgeted with his shirt hem, suddenly shy about taking his clothes off. Daddy found the bubbles under the sink and added them to the water. “I’ll step outside while you undress,” Daddy said, once he’d put the bubbles away. “Call me in when you’re in the tub and ready.”

“Okay,” Leo agreed, feeling relieved. Daddy left and he quickly stripped and climbed into the tub. He waited until the water and bubbles had risen to cover his privates before he turned the water off and called for Daddy to come in.

“I want toy boats, Daddy,” Leo said as Daddy put soap on the washcloth and began washing Leo’s back. “And some toy sharks and—” Leo burst into giggles as Daddy washed under his armpits.

“Oh, you’re ticklish,” Daddy said, grinning. He washed Leo’s chest and arms and handed the washcloth to Leo to wash the bottom half. “Tilt your head back for me,” Daddy instructed as he put water in a plastic cup. He put a hand over Leo’s eyes to block the water from going in and then poured the water over Leo’s head. Leo sighed in contentment as Daddy rubbed shampoo into his curls.

“That feels good,” he told Daddy.

Daddy smiled and leaned forward to kiss Leo’s forehead. He rinsed the shampoo out and then pulled the shower curtain closed. “Unplug the drain and turn the shower on to rinse the bubbles off of you,” Daddy instructed. “When you’re done, there’s a towel hanging on the bar for you. Are your pajamas in your duffel bag?”

“Yes,” Leo answered as he stood up and did what Daddy had told him. He found the towel when he was done and quickly dried off before wrapping it around his waist and opening the bathroom door to see where Daddy had gone with his pajamas.

“In here!” Daddy called out from the bedroom as soon as Leo opened the bathroom door. Leo made his way to Daddy’s bedroom to find that Daddy had brought his duffel bag and backpack into the room and his pajamas were lying on the bed. They were monkey pajamas, a short and t-shirt set, which was very good for summer. “I’ll let you get changed,” Daddy said, standing up and leaving the room.

Leo let the towel dropped and dressed in the pajamas. He opened his backpack and found his Curious George book. “Daddy!” he called out.

Daddy entered, smiling when he noticed the book in Leo’s hands. “What’s that?” he asked.

“Curious George,” Leo answered. “Will you read to me?”

“Of course I will,” Daddy said. He pulled back the covers and Leo climbed into the bed. “We’ll get you your own bed soon,” Daddy promised as he lay down next to Leo, “but for now you can share mine.”

“I don’t mind sharing,” Leo told him. He opened up his book to his favorite Curious George story (Curious George Gets a Medal) and lay back against the pillow, listening as Daddy began to read.

_ I could get used to this _ he thought to himself as he drifted off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading, and for any kudos/comments!


End file.
